Today is a special day, it’s May the 4th. In case you haven’t noticed, it’s Star Wars day. How, you ask? One of the most famous lines in history, “May the Force be with you” has been punned to gloriously real results. It’s a great 24 hours to get your geek on or in general to celebrate the greatest story ever told. Here’s what you got to do:
1. Watch all the movies
You could skip out on the weird episodes I to III and start with the original trilogy and breeze through to the latest, Episode VII: The Force Awakens. But if you do have enough popcorn, go ahead and watch all seven; George Lucas's prequels do have merit, especially if you fast forward all the Jar Jar parts. Alternatively, you could always track down the original untampered George Lucas prints of the first trilogy which hit the theatres way back in 1977. For those with a Blu-Ray player, skip the movies and make an evening of watching the bloopers and added extras, both on disc and online.
2. Watch the animated series
Change things up a little with Star Wars: Clone Wars and the new Star Wars: Rebels animated TV series. The former was especially fantastic, filling the gap between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith films. The show stars Anakin Skywalker and his merry band. When Clone Wars was cancelled, Rebels took over with a more fringe look at the universe. But fun nonetheless.
3. May the Fourth Sales
Though not as popular as in the US, there are niche Indian outlets that have merch sales. VoxPop, the online T-shirt store already has massive discounts on the Star Wars products. Keep a close eye on all online retailers for some amazing sales. You could check out international retailers too if you don’t mind the shipping costs.
4. Enact your favourite scenes, with Lego
Dust off your Star Wars Lego, and start building them to enact your favourite scenes from the series with a couple of friends. Don't own the Lego, then go out and splurge a bit on the big Millennium Falcon Lego set (available on Amazon.in) so you and your loved ones can build it together.
5. Light Saber Battle
Star Wars day unfortunately falls on a working day, but that should not dampen the fun. Get yourselves light sabers, especially those cool Build-A-Blades from Hasbro. Pick up a Darth Vader or Kylo Ren mask to complete the look. You can then have your very own office or home light saber battle. Just make sure you don't hack and slash around sensitive body equipment.
6. Have a Star Wars party
So what if it's a weekday, with a little bit of work you can recreate your own version of the Star Wars Cantina from The New Hope. Make cocktails like The Darth Vader (basically a Black Widow Martini) or a swampy Giggling Yoda or even a variation of the Long Island Ice Tea called The Death Star and more. All of these are easily available online.
7. Get yourself a BB-8
Now is a better time than any to get the ultra cute BB-8 from Sphero that you can control with your smartphone. It’s that adorable rolling yellow and white droid from the latest movie. When not controlled, the BB-8 droid just potters around your house, exploring and commenting on furniture and scaring your pets. You can also give it voice commands, and it can record and play various holographic videos. The cute fellow also patrols your house.
8. Play some games
Celebrate the day by jumping right into the multiplayer Star Wars Battlefront, which will be getting a host of goodies today. For those without Battlefront, just dust off older Star Wars classics like the excellent Star Wars Racer or the brilliant Knights of the Old Republic I and 2. Jedi Knight series and the Force Unleashed are there if you prefer more action in your gaming.
9. Custom cakes
Nothing says May the Fourth Be With You better than customised cakes. Several outlets take orders, especially Candies in Bandra. They will put your choice of image on cupcakes for you and your friends to decimate. If you feel like going bigger, you can get a Star Wars poster printed on top of an entire cake. Dark Chocolate for the dark side and fruity cream for the light side perhaps.
10. Star Wars reveals
Stuck at work, and you aren't able to do any of the above. No worries. Every Star Wars Day sees several releases from upcoming Star Wars movies or games. This year, could be especially big with two movies on the horizon. Star Wars: Rogue could give us a glimpse of Darth Vader's return. The upcoming Episode VIII could finally get a name, perhaps a trailer or teaser of some sort. Who knows, Han Solo could be cast in the upcoming TV series based on the lovable rogue played to perfection by Harrison Ford. If all else fails, just change your desktop’s wallpaper to something Star Wars-y
